The Rapist of Castle Rock
by Nightcrawlerlover
Summary: When a girl named Fredricka Fergusson is found dead outside Castle Rock in an alley, the suspect is thought to be Ace Merrill. Did he really do it? Has Ace become a murderer? Rated T - at least for now.
1. The Victim

**Well, here's a new Stand By Me story. I got the idea from reading the story "Truth or Dare?", which I think is pretty good. I wonder what happened to the girl named Fredricka Fergussen, who was mentioned in Chapter 12 in that story. So I cooked this up. **

**Disclaimer: The geniuses at Columbia Pictures own Stand By Me. I own the songfics, oneshots, stories, novellas and poems I cook up from time to time.**

_Who hadn't heard of Ace Merrill? He was a legend in the small town of Castle Rock, Oregon – a legend for being the only person to drink and screw around more than the Chambers. He was also one of the roughest guys around. But rumor has it that he still lurks around Castle Rock, waiting for young girls to prey upon. That's why no one stayed out past 12:30 in Castle Rock. Ace Merrill had truly become a legend._

* * *

To those who knew her, Fredericka Fergusson was a very beautiful girl. She was 17 years old, and she had a heart-shaped face, brown hair and light-green eyes. At the moment she was writing in her journal one day in the diner when she heard one of her girlfriends calling her name.

"Fredericka!"

She was delighted. "Abigail! Hey!"

Abigail Jackson was a genius at 12 years old. She had brown hair and blue eyes. She could write very well, and she could tell stories (mostly ones that were based on the tales in books she read, especially Arabian Nights). Plus she knew how to solve math problems, too – she just whipped out her pencil and went to work.

Anyway, Abigail sat across from Fredricka and said,

"Guess what?"

"What?" asked Fredricka.

Abigail opened her backpack and whipped out her math test. Scrawled on the front of the test was a big red A!

"All right, Abigail; good job!" said Fredricka in a whisper, even though the diner was empty.

"I know!" Abigail replied. Then she looked puzzled. "How did you do?"

Fredricka's face fell. "Not so good."

She could tell Abigail wanted to hear more, so she whipped out her own math test, as they gave them the same tests the previous day. The front of her test sported a big red F!

Abigail raised her eyebrows.

"What happened?" she finally asked. "Did you slack off?"

"Oh yeah, Abigail, big time." She put the test back in her own backpack and closed it. "So, Abigail, where do you get your brains from in your family?"

"Uh, well-"

Before Abigail could answer, the door to the diner swung open. Both girls turned to see who it was…and couldn't believe their eyes!

It was…**him…**


	2. The Rapist

**Hey guys, here's Chapter 2!**

* * *

No way…

It couldn't be _him…!_

But it was…

His name? Ace Merrill.

He had short blond hair, blue eyes, and a handsome face. He was the "bad boy" of Castle Rock. And he was the leader of a gang called the Cobras. He wore a black shirt, a pair of black Levis, and black shoes. He looked pretty cool.

The guy with Ace was Richard Chambers, Chris Chambers' brother. But everyone called him Eyeball.

The Chambers family was seen by everyone in Castle Rock as a bad family. The dad was an alcoholic. The mom was a streetwalker. The older brother was a rapist. Eyeball was a juvenile delinquent. And then there was Chris. He was seen as a thief ever since the milk money incident at school. Everyone would hide their purses and their wallets as though they thought he would steal them. All those idiots knew was his last name. They judged him because they didn't know.

But his friends saw him differently, especially Gordie.

And Chris knew that deep down, he was a good kid.

"Hey, Eyeball," Abigail spoke up.

Eyeball looked over at Abigail and said,

"You know my name?"

"Of course; you're famous, or something like that," Abigail replied.

Eyeball blinked, a little confused. Was he really that famous?

Abigail then turned to Fredricka.

"Fredricka, take a look at me. People think I'm stuck up. They hit me and insult me. They judge me because they don't know me very well. Except you. You believe I'm nice, right?"

Fredricka nodded. "Of course I believe you. We're friends."

With that the two smiled, then reached across the table and hugged each other.

As Eyeball watched, he sensed tears coming into his eyes.

"_That's beautiful," _he thought._"I wish I had learned to express love at an early age. But I never got the chance."_

He was answered by a whack across the back of the head. Luckily the girls didn't see it; they were too busy chatting in whispers.

He turned to see Ace.

"Eyeball," said Ace, "are you showing your feelings?"

Eyeball felt that he was in a tough bind. Should he tell the truth?

"Yes I am, Ace," he snapped. "Is that a crime?"

Ace was a little taken aback.

"Uh…no. At least, I don't think so. Sorry about the…"

"It's ok," said Eyeball, smiling.

Then Ace turned to Abigail.

"Hey Abigail."

Abigail glanced up. "Yeah?"

"Is it a crime to show your feelings?"

Abigail thought for a moment.

"I believe that showing your feelings is a good idea, Ace."

As she turned back to Fredricka, Ace looked at Abigail for the first time.

"_Hey, she has blue eyes," _he thought. _"Like me."_

She wore a green turtleneck, black Levis, white socks and black shoes with Velcro. Over the turtleneck, she wore a royal blue coat with blue snaps and pockets that were blue on the outside and gray on the inside.

According to Ace, she was beautiful…

He was the town bully, the guy that the girls liked.

He had heard about bullies and what they were supposedly like when in school.

Then he remembered something Abigail had told him and the Cobras once…

"_Bullies are the worst kind of people. They are the worst nightmares. I've ran into them in school, too." _

"_Really?" said Ace. He was shocked._

_So was Eyeball. _

"_Abigail, you run into bullies…at school?" he said._

"_Why would they pick on you? You're a girl," said Ace._

Ace blinked. Why would a bully pick on Abigail? He thought for a moment. It wasn't because of her looks; she was very beautiful.

Then he knew.

"_It's because I'm known as a genius. They're jealous." _

Then Ace remembered that day…

_One day when Ace, Eyeball, Vince, Billy, Fuzzy and Charlie were out walking, they found something on the ground. Ace picked it up. It was Abigail's royal blue coat - the only one she had._

"_Looks like Abigail forgot her jacket," said Ace. They started walking, but then he and the others stopped and took a closer look at the jacket. There was a coat of rust along the collar. They looked at the ground; there was a line of the rust along the field. They looked up…and there was Abigail. She was lying on her side. They ran towards her, and Ace rolled her onto her back. She looked almost cut up and bruised. Ace picked her up. _

"_Abigail…" said Ace, swallowing a lump in his throat. The others didn't look so good. The sight of all that blood was enough to make them want to faint._

"_Hey…" Abigail said. But she didn't sound so good._

_She then told them the whole story. She had been looking for treasure to give each of them when some guys walked up. They then tackled her to the ground and began hitting her, calling her every cruel name under the sun, and pulling her hair. One of them had two rings on his hand - that was what had cut Abigail up so badly._

Then Ace looked at Abigail as she looked now. She looked okay for the most part, but Ace was a little worried.

He had heard stories about a rapist that kidnapped girls, and after raping them he would murder them. Their bodies were usually found in an alleyway or a dumpster.

He knew Abigail, as well as Fredricka, wasn't safe.

He had to do something. Then he smirked as an idea popped into his head…


	3. A Confrontation and a Fight

**Here's chapter 3! I send my thanks to Becky Galler for reviewing my story and putting it on her favorites list. This is for her!**

* * *

It was the next night, and the moon was full. Both Fredricka and Abigail were asleep - Fredricka in her bed and Abigail in a sleeping bag. (Abigail had been invited to Fredricka's for a sleepover as a celebration for Abigail's helping Fredricka to raise her math grades. Thanks to Abigail's tutelage, Fredricka was now a math whiz. But that didn't go to her head; she kept herself grounded - another way of saying humbled - and gave Abigail the credit, like a good friend should.)

But there was one person who was not asleep. Ace walked over to the alley where so many girls had been taken to, raped and murdered.

He had an angry gleam in his eyes. He wanted to avenge those girls' deaths.

Suddenly a figure wearing black leaped out of the shadows. He was covered in black clothes, all except his eyes. They were blue. Ace knew who he was - the Rapist of Castle Rock.

"So," said Ace, "we meet for the first time, Mike."

The rapist's eyes bugged out.

"You're Ace Merrill," he said, "and you know my name."

"Of course," said Ace calmly.

"What do you want?"

"I want nothing more than to avenge the deaths of those girls you've kidnapped, raped and murdered," Ace said.

"Ah, _those_ ones. Cute little things…" Innocent enough words twisted to fit his evil meaning.

Ace felt a surge of possessive anger that dwarfed what he had felt before at the mere thought of those filthy hands defiling his girlfriends. He wanted nothing more than to very slowly carve that smirk from his face. To draw his death out over days until his soul finally fled to the underworld, where it would be tormented yet more for all eternity.

"Fine," growled Mike. "Shall we begin this little fight of ours?"

"Whenever you are ready," smirked Ace, then not being able to resist shooting one final blow at the rapist. "I have a prize to get to."

"I think not," said Mike. He was about to toss Ace a knife. But he changed his mind when he saw Ace pull out his switchblade and flick the blade open. "The first one to draw blood from the other person's torso wins."

Ace looked at his switchblade admiring it for its shine and sharpness; he had good taste in blades, he knew that. Then he turned to Mike.

"You're dead," said Ace.

The two males slowly began to circle each other, looking for an opening. Ace saw the first opening and lunged forward catching Mike's face and causing it to bleed slightly. Mike leapt back, wiped at the blood flowing from his neck and then lunged at Ace, going for his throat. Ace snarled, his eyes flashing dangerously as a maniacal grin was forming on his face. He lunged again and ducked under Mike's arm going for his lower torso around and stabbed him in the side above the stomach. Mike growled and grabbed hold of the wound where Ace had stuck the blade in. He dropped to his knees, blue eyes flashing; Ace was staring down at him, smirking in pleasure at beating the rapist, then pulled his knife out.

"Looks like I win," said Ace, cleaning his switchblade on his coat, then putting it in his pocket.

Mike lay there, still alive, but bleeding a little.

"_Now," _Ace thought, _"Abigail and Fredricka are safe."_

He smirked, stared at the fallen male - with brown hair, as his hood had fallen off - and left him in the alley.

Finally, his revenge was complete, and Abigail, he knew, would have nothing to worry about the next time she went walking at night.

He looked up as the Cobras appeared.

"Ace," said Eyeball; he was in shock. So were Fuzzy, Charlie, Vince and Billy. They couldn't believe their eyes.

"What happened to you?" asked Charlie.

"Simple. He went into battle, and he won," said Abigail's voice behind them. They turned to see her with a smile.

Ace couldn't help but smile back.

"That's gallant," said Abigail. Then she walked up to Ace.

"The southern gentlemen in the book 'Gone With the Wind' have nothing on you, Ace. You ride off into sure death because you're gallant."

Ace thought about what she said.

"You're right," he said, grinning.

Then Abigail walked over to Mike, then knelt in front of him. Mike opened his eyes.

"Uh, hi?"

He saw…her. Abigail Jackson. And she looked very angry.

"Mike!" she snapped. "You were going to attack me and take away my innocence?"

Before Mike could answer she went on.

"Compared to you Ace is a gentleman. If I've told you once I've told you a million times - try being a writer. Being a writer never hurt anyone!"

Then she lifted her hand and slapped him.

Ace and the Cobras flinched. They knew from experience not to make Abigail angry when she was in a dangerous mood and her blue eyes were blazing like that. Eyeball knew that all too well. Once when he called some of her guy friends girls at the diner, Abigail went psycho. She leaped into the air, baring her nails and her teeth and tackled him to the ground.

"Uh-oh," he said.

She then attacked him, punching him and calling him every cruel name under the sun. When she was done she snapped at him,

"They're boys, like you. So call them guys, like I do. You dig?"

He nodded.

After that Eyeball never called her guy friends that again; he called them guys and tried to be nice to them for Abigail's sake.

Eyeball bit his lower lip.

He didn't want to tangle with Abigail when her baby blues were blazing.

She was dangerous like that sometimes.

Abigail, in the meantime, got to her feet and walked over to the Cobras.

"Well, I better get back to Fredricka's and get some sleep," she said.

"Excuse me, boys."

They moved aside and let her through.

Ace then spoke up.

"Abigail's right," he said. "I am gallant."

"Hey, so are we," said Eyeball. "Right, guys?"

"Oh, yeah," said Vince.

"Yep," said Charlie.

"Too true," Billy concurred.

"Absolutely," said Fuzzy.

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**Well, read and review!**


	4. Ace spies on Abigail

**Well, here's the next chapter. I'm sorry for the delay. I had writer's block. (I dislike that as much you probably do.) The excerpt from The Raven by Edgar Allen Poe (which I also don't own) really inspired me. So I put it in here. This is for all my reviewers - LostWithoutHim, Becky Galler, and The Coffee Gladiator. Thanks! (hands out cookies)**

**A little shout out.**

**LostWithoutHim: You could be right. Ace does seem like Dally from "The Outsiders".**

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**Previously...**

__

Eyeball bit his lower lip.

He didn't want to tangle with Abigail when her baby blues were blazing.

She was dangerous like that sometimes.

Abigail, in the meantime, got to her feet and walked over to the Cobras.

"Well, I better get back to Fredricka's and get some sleep," she said.

"Excuse me, boys."

They moved aside and let her through.

Ace then spoke up.

"Abigail's right," he said. "I am gallant."

"Hey, so are we," said Eyeball.

"Right, guys?"

"Oh, yeah," said Vince.

"Yep," said Charlie.

"Too true," Billy concurred.

"Absolutely," said Fuzzy.

* * *

The next day at Castle Rock Junior High, Abigail and Fredricka were walking down the hall together. Soon, they would split up at the end of the hallway. Abigail went to Study Hall and Fredricka to Music.

"Anyway, I was tied down to the bed. Then Ace walked in. He headed over to the bed and got on top of me. Then, smirking, he pulled out his switchblade and flicked the blade open.

"My eyes widened in horror. His smirk grew wider. Then it happened…"

Abigail spoke in whispers, but Ace could hear her a mile away.

Ever since he had seen Abigail slap the rapist the previous night, he had been intrigued by her.

There was something about her - the brown hair, the blue eyes, and her witty way of making up stories. She just had something in her. He couldn't get her out of his mind.

But for some reason no one could fathom, girls _loved _him. He would always be able to reel in the girls. The only problem was they'd never be cast back out to sea.

Ace knew he could reel in Abigail Jackson… and never cast her back out to sea.

Sometimes he would often see her with a book in her hand. This only intrigued him more.

It came as no surprise that she got her ideas for stories from books. He also wondered how she got so smart that she was able to get straight A's in Language Arts.

His grin grew wider as he cooked up a plan.

Meanwhile, Abigail stepped over the threshold of her Study Hall class and found her seat in the back.

She loved to write. She was the sort of person who sometimes needed solitude to concentrate her abilities and polish her skills to the point where they attained the brilliant shine she was forever seeking.

She just let her pencil take her where it would. It was almost like a meditative state, or a prayer…a way to bring herself back to her center and contemplate the issues and problems in her life without actually thinking on a conscious level.

She never knew how her stories would turn out. She would just sit down and start writing, and wait to see what would happen.

For Abigail, sometimes it was hard for her to believe she actually made her stories up.

Anyway, she reached into her coat pocket and pulled out a pencil. Then she reached into her desk and pulled out her notebook.

She preferred to write with a pencil because pencils had erasers. If she made a mistake while writing, she would just turn her pencil and erase the mistake, and then keep writing.

After opening her notebook, she then thought for a moment.

Then she began to write.

_In there stepped a stately raven of the saintly days of yore.  
Not the least obeisance made he; not a minute stopped or stayed he;  
But, with mien of lord or lady, perched above my chamber door -  
Perched upon a bust of Pallas just above my chamber door -  
Perched, and sat, and nothing more._

_Then this ebony bird beguiling my sad fancy into smiling,  
By the grave and stern decorum of the countenance it wore,  
Though thy crest be shorn and shaven, thou,' I said, art sure no craven.  
Ghastly grim and ancient raven wandering from the nightly shore -  
Tell me what thy lordly name is on the Night's Plutonian shore!'  
Quoth the raven, Nevermore.'_

"Thus quoth the raven, nevermore," Abigail whispered to herself.

Then, as though she was struck by a bolt of lightning, a thunderbolt of inspiration hit her.

Feverishly this time, she began to write.

She filled about three pages. Then she put her pencil down and took a break, just to be on the safe side. She never wanted to get writer's cramp…or writer's block for that matter.

Halfway through, she was looking down at her story when she heard Mr. Smith start yelling- a rare occurrence. So she perked up her ears.

"Mr. Merrill, you cannot come and go as you please in this classroom!"

Abigail looked up and blinked. Her heartbeat quickened.

Ace had been to about 4 study hall classes all year and didn't stick around long at the ones he did show up for. Ace looked at Mr. Smith and said,

"Well, I'm here. So let's keep learning, shall we? Study Hall is ever so intriguing."

He turned and walked towards the back of the room and Abigail noticed he looked cool as a cucumber. He continued to walk back towards where she was sitting and as luck may have it, there was an empty seat behind hers.

__

Well, here goes…

She then looked at her notebook and started writing for the third time. The sound of the pencil scratching the paper caught Ace's ears. He looked over, and as he sat down, his smirk grew wider.

The dark chocolate hair of hers (which sometimes looked like it turned red in summertime) was a giveaway. So were the pencils sticking out of her pocket and the notebook on her desk.

Abigail was so busy staying focused on her story, she didn't even notice Ace slither like a serpent into the seat behind her.

Then she stopped, sensing…something…evil in the air.

"Ahh, smart and beautiful. I like that," purred Ace's all-too-familiar voice behind her.

Abigail froze. Her entire body ceased to function.

__

That voice…

She could take a lot of dares from Teddy Duchamp, defend Chris Chambers, and yet she would never forget it. It had haunted her dreams, taunted her with forbidden promises, and now it rolled over her senses like honey.

As if in slow motion she turned her body, her eyes resting to the position where the voice had came from, and there he sat, his eyes gleaming, as though her every thought was right in front of him, an open book for him to read…

Ace Merrill…!

"Hello, Abby…" he purred.

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**Oh, I bet you're wondering 'What is Ace planning?' Well, give me some ideas, and I'll see what I can do about the next chapter.**


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